Since the article provides only the barest minimum of details and invites all kinds of wild speculation, here's my entry for the "What Really Happened" guessing game:

The kid was a cocky douche who made a big showy "I'm number one!" gesture directed at the judges. When they got honked off about it, his dad tried to cover by claiming it was really a humble thank you to God, and therefore protected religious speech. When that didn't fly either, douchey kid got extra douchey and the judges unloaded a big heaping scoop of DQ on the self-fingering little snowflake.

/ahh, sweet uninformed opinion. Are there no questions you cannot answer?

Officials feeling bad for students feeling bad because they lost. Hurt feelings all around. Celebrations are unfair and don't make anyone but the winners feel good and that's just not fair. Ahhh. Poor weak people.

TexasRedbud:He wasn't disqualified for religious demonstration. The argument is being made that he should be excused because it was religious. I really do not have an opinion about that. I do not think it matters why he raised his arms.

I want to know when raising your hands / arms at the end of a race became 'excessive celebration'? How sensitive does the losing team have to be to be intimidated by the raising of arms? Have we, as a society become such a bunch of complete wusses that we can be so easily offended? And I have always wanted to ask, ' when did it become a 'right' to not be offended. If you are offended so easily, stay home.

If watching the winner of a race raise his arms puts you off, maybe competing in athletics isn't your thing?

loveblondieo:It would have been helpful if the article actually stated what he was doing that was disrespectful to the officials. Just pointing the sky doesn't seem so bad.

This.I would like to see how other people celebrated when they won and what the line is between "excessive" and acceptable.Can you look up to the sky?Can you pump your fist?Can you cover your face with your hands?Can you say "yes!"

Benevolent Misanthrope:Yeah - it DOES, however, prohibit acting like an asshole to the officials, which, if you RTFA, he did.

No, that is not what TFA article said.

"...was disqualified by local meet officials for an unsporting act at the conclusion of the boys 4 x100 meter relay.The meet official indicated the athlete crossed the finish line and gestured upward with his arm and finger and behaved disrespectfully toward meet officials, in their opinion. In the judgment of the official, this was a violation of NFHS track & field rule 4-6-1.

The violation was specified as excessive celebration. The act of this excessive celebration is what was perceived as being disrespectful.

TFA states that they convened after they witnessed this excessive celebration, not due to his "acting like an asshole to officials".

tenpoundsofcheese:Benevolent Misanthrope: Yeah - it DOES, however, prohibit acting like an asshole to the officials, which, if you RTFA, he did.

No, that is not what TFA article said.

"...was disqualified by local meet officials for an unsporting act at the conclusion of the boys 4 x100 meter relay. The meet official indicated the athlete crossed the finish line and gestured upward with his arm and finger and behaved disrespectfully toward meet officials, in their opinion. In the judgment of the official, this was a violation of NFHS track & field rule 4-6-1.

The violation was specified as excessive celebration. The act of this excessive celebration is what was perceived as being disrespectful.

TFA states that they convened after they witnessed this excessive celebration, not due to his "acting like an asshole to officials".

FTFA: In the judgment of the official, this was a violation of NFHS track & field rule 4-6-1.

Okay, so 4-6-1 states: "Unsporting conduct is behavior that is unethical or dishonorable. Itincludes, but is not limited to: disrespectfully addressing an official, any flagrant behavior, intentional contact, taunting, criticizing or using profanity directed toward someone. "